“It would probably be the most convenient, Corina,” I added.
Her eyes dashed back and forth between Tripp and me.
“Well, I live close by too.” Lane added.
Corina turned to him. “Lane, I hardly know you. It wouldn’t be appropriate for us to live together.”
He frowned. “But it would with you and Mitchell?”
She chewed on her bottom lip. It looked like she was actually thinking about this asshole’s proposition.
I went to speak, but Tripp beat me to it. “Seriously, Lewis, how long have you been gone? You want the kindergarten teacher and the first grade teacher living together? Mitchell’s a cop and has earned respect in the community. Plus, he’s Corina’s friend. People won’t think twice that he’s offered her a place to stay.”
Corina looked at Milo, then back up at me. “I guess it makes the most sense to stay with Mitchell. I mean, Lane you said you were in a small, one-bedroom place.”
When I glanced over to Lane, he looked furious.
Finally, he grinned. “Hey, I’m renting out a place at the old Riley house. You could look at getting something there.”
Tripp nodded. “Oh, yeah, I heard they converted it into a bed and breakfast. Shame they don’t take pets,” he said, nodding at Milo in Corina’s arms. Lane’s face dropped; he knew what was happening too.
With a clap of hands, Tripp added, “Well, that settles it. No way you two can stay in a one-room together without the cat. Tongues would be wagging, and I’m sure you wouldn’t want that for Corina.”
“No, not at all. Staying with Mitchell until she can make other arrangements is probably for the best.”
I wanted to laugh. Other arrangements? I don’t think so.
One quick glance to Corina showed her eyes bouncing back and forth amongst the three of us. I was a bit surprised she didn’t speak up. After all, we were basically deciding where she would live, and she wasn’t uttering a word.
I reached for Milo. “I had them call the Oak Springs shelter. They brought a cage for Milo.”
Corina handed me the cat, still not saying a word as she watched a young lady open the cage for me. After slipping Milo in, I asked, “Kim, would you mind taking Milo to Doc Harris? I’m sure Corina will want to make sure he’s okay.”
The girl who worked at the shelter nodded. “Of course. I’m sure Doc ‘ll want him to stay the night. You can pick ‘im up in the mornin’, if you want.”
Tripp let out a chuckle as Corina stared at Kim with an open mouth. The girl’s Texas accent was heavy as hell and even hard for me to understand.
“Thanks, Kim. Either Corina or I’ll be by to pick him up.”
She took the crate and started talking to Milo. Corina looked worried now, on top of being scared. She still didn’t say a damn thing about the living arrangements, which gave me hope that maybe she secretly wanted to stay with me. “Will he be okay, Mitch?” she asked in a voice barely above a whisper.
Lane wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “He’ll be fine, Corina.”
Taking me by the arm, Tripp guided me away. “Listen, I know what you’re thinking. I’m thinking it, too; he’s a slimy fucker. But what you need to concentrate on is helping her through this.”
“Did you say Mom and Dad wouldn’t want her at the house because you wanted her to stay with me? Why would you do that?”
He grinned. “As bad as this shit is, it’s almost a blessing in disguise, Mitch. This is your second chance with her. You’d better not fuck it up.”
Looking past Tripp’s shoulder, I couldn’t help the tug at the corners of my mouth when Corina stepped out of Lane’s hold. She glanced over her shoulder and looked at me. For about five seconds she stared into my eyes, and I knew Tripp was right.
This was my second chance. No way in hell was I letting Lane Loser Lewis steal the only woman I’d ever cared about.
No way in hell.
I stumbled into the kitchen, then stopped on a dime when I saw her.
My dick instantly went hard while I scanned Corina’s body. She was dressed in one of my old T-shirts and a pair of shorts she had pulled to the side and tied a hairband around to keep them up.
Sexy. As. Fuck.
Getting my head out of my ass, I spoke. “Hey, I figured you’d be exhausted.”
Corina stood in front of my coffee maker, waiting for it to dispense its liquid gold. “I can’t sleep.”
She turned around and looked me over. I had on a pair of sweats. And that was it.
I wanted to smile as she took in every inch of my body. She lingered a little long on my chest before snapping her eyes to mine. “Are you going to make it a habit to walk around half-naked?”
I shrugged. “What? Normally I walk in here butt ass naked. So, compared to my normal attire, this is a one-hundred-percent improvement.”
Her eye twitched, and I could tell she was holding back a smart-ass reply.
“Are you going to let Milo live here or is that why you had that girl take him away?”
I narrowed my eyes as I made my way over to the coffee. Corina stepped away. It was almost like she was scared to let me breathe on her.
“Of course he’s welcome here, Corina. And I didn’t let Kim take him away. She took him to Doc Harris. We can head over there now and get him, if you want.”
She let out a sharp laugh. “We? So, what are we now, Mitch? Best friends? Buddies?”
I took out a coffee mug, filled it to the brim, and handed it to her. “The way I see it, Corina, we’re roommates. If you’d rather go shack up with your new friend, have at it.”
Her eyes widened. She opened her mouth and shut it just as quickly. My phone rang.
“This is Mitch.”
“Mitchell, it’s Dr. Harris.”
“Doc Harris, how is Milo?”
Corina reached for the phone, but I pushed her hand away.
“He’s doing great,” Doc Harris said. “Sitting on the front desk flirting with all the women.”
I laughed. “Smart cat.”
“Must have learned that from you.”
“Not this time, Doc. Corina, Milo’s mom, and I will be heading down soon to come get him.”
Corina stopped trying to take the phone from my hands and took a step back. She turned and sat down at the bar.
“Sounds good, Mitchell,” Doc Harris said. “Shame about the young lady’s house. Chief said something was suspicious about the fire this morning at the café.”
That comment pulled my eyes off of Corina. “What?”
“Don’t be saying anything to anyone. I wasn’t supposed to repeat that.”
My hand went to the back of my neck where I tried to rub the instant tension away. Turning my back to Corina, I asked, “What makes him think that?”
“I’m not sure. You’ll have to talk to him about it. He said he was gonna give you a call about it.”
A knot formed in my stomach at the idea of someone setting Corina’s house on fire. My mind drifted back to Lane standing there, smiling at the burning house.
“Right. Thanks, Doc. We’ll see you in a bit.”
“I’ll have the girls put some things together for the young lady. I’m sure she won’t have anything for the cat.”
I turned and looked at Corina. “That’s awfully nice of ya, Doc. We are sure lucky to have you.”
“Well, the plan is to retire soon, but I won’t leave Oak Springs until I have a replacement I feel worthy of the town.”
My brows lifted. “You’re retiring? The town will sure miss you.”
He laughed. “I’m not leaving Oak Springs anytime soon. You’ll still see me around, and I’m sure I’ll come in and help out the new vet.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Better get going. See ya soon.”
“Sounds good, Mitchell.”
The line went dead, and I was about to say something when my doorbell rang.
“Mitchell?” Blue eyes locked with mine before a pissed-off look washed ove
r Corina’s face. “Who is that?”
“Before you go accusing me, it’s Amelia. She has a key.” Her face relaxed. “She brought you some stuff. I called her last night and was hoping she’d be here before you woke up.”
“Oh, that was really nice of you.” Her eyes drifted away, like she felt guilty about whatever she’d just been thinking.
“Any decent person would have done it.”
Amelia walked into the kitchen, a huge smile on her face. I couldn’t get over how my sister practically glowed.
“Hey,” I said, pulling her into a hug. “You look beautiful. Do you know that?”
Drawing back, Amelia looked up at me. “I do?”
“Yes,” I said as I tapped her nose. “You look good in love.”
She blushed. “Thank you, Mitchell. Wade makes me the happiest I’ve ever been.” Spinning on her heels, Amelia faced Corina. “Waylynn and I raided our closets and have bags of clothes for Mitchell to bring up. I stopped at the store and got you some shampoo, a toothbrush, and some deodorant. I hope I got the right kind. I tried to think of everything you’d need right now.”
Tears filled Corina’s eyes. She buried her face in her hands and lost it crying.
Amelia shot me a dirty look. “What did you do to her, Mitchell Parker?”
My mouth dropped open. “What? I didn’t do anything!”
Corina dropped her hands to her lap. “He…he’s been…w-wonderful. It’s just me. I don’t know what to do. I lost everything. Pictures, memories. Everything I owned is…gone.”
Amelia hit me on the chest and motioned for me to go over to her. I pointed to myself with a ‘Who? Me?’ look, and she nodded.
Looks like Amelia was in on the plan for me to win Corina over.
I motioned I had no shirt on, and she gave me the stink eye. Making my way over to her, I lifted her off the stool and pulled her into my arms. She melted against my body. It took every ounce of willpower I had to keep my dick from going hard.
“All that is replaceable, Corina,” I said. “I know it hurts to lose all of it, but on the bright side, you saved Milo. And you can really make that house amazing with the insurance money!”
Amelia’s eyes widened before she slowly shook her head in disappointment. Corina pulled back and looked up at me. It killed me to see her crying. Using my thumbs, I wiped her tears away.
“Please, don’t cry,” I whispered.
Something moved across her face as she stared at me. “You saved Milo. You ran into the house to save him. Why would you do that?”
My heart was pounding. I wanted to tell her I did it for her. That there wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for her. Instead, I said, “Instinct. Guess it comes with my job.”
I could practically feel Amelia’s eyes burning a hole in me.
“Oh,” Corina whispered.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Recover!
I shrugged. “Plus, it was Milo. He was yours, and I know how much you love him.”
“So really what you’re saying is, you did it for Corina?” Amelia asked in an annoyed tone of voice.
We turned and stared at Amelia. Now it was my turn with the daggers.
There was no way I was going to let Mitchell see my reaction when Amelia spoke.
“Yes, Amelia. Thanks for clearing that up.”
Amelia smiled. “Sure, no problem. Okay, so if you need anything, let me know? I’m late for a conference call with my agent.”
Walking to her, I pulled her tight and whispered, “Thank you for everything.”
Her hold tightened. “You were there for me, and I promise I’ll be here for you. No matter what.”
When we stepped back, we both had tears in our eyes. I never imagined when I moved to this small town I’d make such amazing friends. Paxton had been a gift in my life, but the addition of Amelia and Waylynn was like icing on top of my favorite cake.
“I’ll call you later,” Amelia said. “Maybe we can all head into San Antonio and do some shopping.”
I nodded. “I’m meeting with the insurance company around noon, so I’ll let you know when I’m finished.”
“I’m glad they’re not making you wait until Monday.”
My chest tightened as I thought about the phone call last night. I could hardly talk when I called the insurance company. Mitchell ended up telling them what happened while I sat on his couch and held my knees into my chest. I’d had my few moments of weakness, and now it was time to pull my big-girl panties up and handle this like an adult.
Yes, I lost everything. But no one died. Milo was safe. I was safe. And currently standing in Mitchell’s kitchen with him half-naked. As much as I loved the view, I would never let him know. I needed to remember the wall I’d built. He might have been acting all sweet and kind, but if I let him in, I’d risk being hurt again.
A part of me knew he was trying, but I needed more time to figure things out. The last thing I needed was to let my guard down.
Hurt me once, shame on you. Hurt me twice…shame on me.
“Hey, you okay?” Amelia asked, touching my arm.
With a forced smile, I nodded. “Yeah, tired and ready to see Milo.”
Leaning in, she kissed me on the cheek. “Alright, talk to you soon. Later, Mitchell.”
“Bye Amelia.”
The second she disappeared I felt a tingle move across my body. Mitchell had walked up behind me. I wanted him to touch me…anywhere. I wanted something to ease the ache. But I also wanted to run like crazy.
“I’m, um, I’m gonna go get dressed so we can get Milo,” Mitchell said. “Doc isn’t usually open for long on Saturdays.”
I swallowed and watched him walk past me with his cup of coffee, into his bedroom. He’d given me a quick tour of his place last night, but I took these few moments to myself to really explore.
I’d already checked out the entire kitchen earlier. It was obvious Melanie had a hand in the design. Plus, Mitchell had every kitchen gadget known to man. I didn’t even think the man knew how to cook, but he was well stocked.
The kitchen opened into the living room, which lead to the terrace. I stepped out and took in a deep breath. It was a corner balcony that went around the side of the building. Glancing down, I looked at Main Street and all the people walking toward Lilly’s Café.
I sat down on one of Mitchell’s chairs and sipped my coffee while I people-watched. Lane walked up and I went to call out his name but he stopped in front of Lucy, Lilly’s daughter who worked at her mom’s café. I watched as they talked and couldn’t help but notice how much Lane flirted with her. It wasn’t like I cared—I didn’t have those types of feelings toward him. He was good looking, but there was something about him I didn’t like.
I also wasn’t sure he would last as a first-grade teacher.
He smiled, and then walked in the other direction while Lucy headed into the café. I shrugged. Of course, I could have Lane pegged all wrong. I doubted it, though.
I headed into the house and made my way through the living room. The décor was simple, classic with a slight ranch feel to it. His sofa and love seat were both made of a beautiful, soft leather. Running my fingers over it, I smiled. “This screams Mitchell Parker.”
I made my way down the hall and took the right turn that led to either the guest room on the left, or the office on the right.
“Which way do I go?” I asked myself. “Right. Office.”
I smiled at the large desk. I instantly fell into a fantasy of Mitchell taking me from behind as I laid across the massive oak desk. The things I wanted Mitchell to teach me. I closed my eyes and squeezed my legs together.
Ugh, stop this Corina.
After pushing my naughty daydream away, I glanced around the office. Everything was neat and in its place. Not really what I was expecting, but then again, why not? Mitchell was a cop; he was a responsible kind of guy, except when it came to my heart.
My eyes lifted to the bookcase behind the desk. Mystery books. I let out a chuckle while
I made my way over to them.
“Let’s see, James Patterson, John Grisham, Agatha Christie…nice pick there.” I bent down to read the others. “Patricia Cornwell, David Baldacci, Frank Peretti.” Reaching for the Peretti book, I stood up and looked at the title. This Present Darkness.
“It’s a great book. You should read it.”
I jumped and let out a small scream. Spinning, I looked at Mitchell. “You scared me.”
He grinned. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to. Frank Peretti is an amazing writer. Christian mystery.”
“I’ll have to read it.”
“Are you ready to go?”
Glancing down, I said, “Um, no. I need to get the bags Amelia brought.”
“I already did. They’re in your room. I’ll give you a few minutes to get ready while I run down to Lilly’s. Want a breakfast taco?”
I couldn’t help the smile that tugged at my mouth. I knew he didn’t cook!
“That would be great. Just a bacon and egg. I’ll meet you down there?”
He nodded. “I’ve left you a house key on the dresser in your room. Just lock the door when you leave.”
I watched Mitchell retreat. Letting out the breath I hadn’t noticed I was holding, I made my way into the guest room, the book still clutched in my arms. It wasn’t lost on me that Mitchell referred to it as my room. Once I found out how long it would take to get my house back, I would make the decision on what to do.
After finding something to wear from the clothes Amelia had brought, I washed my face, applied a small bit of make-up and pulled my hair into a pony. I slipped on my sandals I had worn last night and made my way downstairs.
“Dang it! The key!”
Dashing back into the room, I grabbed the key. My phone was sitting on the dresser, as well. Fully charged, thanks to Mitchell finding an extra charger for me last night. I hit the home button and saw I had a text from Lane.
I chewed on my lip for a few seconds before heading out of the room, leaving behind the phone and the unread text.
The drive to the vet’s office was relatively quiet, which left me wallowing in my own silence. I had nothing to do but think. And, boy, did I think.